UNHCR,Red Cross observe refugee cultural day

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 05:08:07 GMT

Friday, August 08, 2008

The word refugee means someone who has been forced to leave their country, especially during war or for political or religious reasons. To be a refugee does not meant one is without a roof over his or her head or without hope for living a meaningful life or future.

There are many circumstances through which a person may a refugee. A special reference is made to the real cause or causes of refugee problems in the Horn of Africa, and in the West African sub-region. We are all living witnesses to the somewhat horrible and untold wars or internal conflicts in some of our sister countries such as Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, and Casamance in the southern region of our sister republic of Senegal.

It is noteworthy that most of these wars or internal conflicts cause and continue to cause an untold number of deaths, uprooted and continue to uproot thousands of people from their dwelling places and countries. In most instances they cause permanent disconnection between families and loved ones. The Gambia, fondly called the Smiling Coast of West Africa, continues to be a host to thousands of refugees drawn from different war torn and conflict stricken countries within the sub-region.

As hosts, the government, in collaboration with the United Nations High Commision for Refugees (UNHCR), the Gambia Red Cross Society and other humanitarian agencies, contributed and continue to contribute significantly towards the welfare of these huge number of refugees hosted in the country.

It was in this vein that the United Nations High Commission for Refugee (UNHCR) in collaboration with the Gambia Red Cross Society on 27th July, 2008, organised a mass refugee cultural jamboree in Bullock Village, Western Region ((WR).The cultural event brought together refugees from Casamance, in the Southern Region of Senegal. The traditional cultural jamboree accorded the refugees and their host communities the golden opportunity to interact and share expriences in a spirit of love and harmony. It was characterised by extensive, educative and heart touching drama, all bordering on the untold consequences of war.

Lamin Cassama, dessemination coordinator and site manager ofthe Gambia Red Cross-UNHCR Cooperation agreement on Casamance Refugees, in a recent chat with the Arts and Culture deskman, described the cultural show as a positive step in the right direction considering the current situation in the Casamance region, where almost the entire population was displaced by the war and many others lost their lives.

This day, he said was observed in order to diminish the trauma most of these refugees were subjected to in one way or the other. The day has significant bearings towards instilling and nurturing the culture of peace and unity amongst them and their host communities, he added.

The Red Cross man revealed that the event will now be organised twice in every year.
“We are thinking of having another one some time in December but no specific date has been set yet,” he said. He extended sincere and profound appreciation to those who made the event a success, especially UNHCR and the government of the Gambia as well as the host communities of the refugees.

Author: by Sanna Jawara

PRESIDENT’S NEW YEAR MESSAGE 20% salary rise for Civil Servants

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 04:19:17 GMT

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Fellow Gambians

As a new year dawns on us and we begin the year 2008, it is customary for us, as individuals and as a nation, to reflect on our achievements and shortcomings during the year just ended and commit ourselves to confronting the challenges before us with renewed vigor and greater collective efforts. The stakes may indeed be high but our success, to a very large measure, will be determined by our courage and resilience to overcome these challenges.

In the year 2007, as indeed in the preceding years since July 22nd 1994, The Gambia has continued to register enviable progress in our development efforts. Thanks to the Almighty Allah, my Government has been able to successfully initiate, launch, and implement numerous development projects particularly in the social and infrastructural sectors such as the construction of roads, health and educational infrastructure.

I must recognise also the immense contributions of the private sector in complementing government’s efforts in creating needed services and jobs through their investment activities. We have witnessed unprecedented investments in banking and financial services, tourism, telecommunications, fisheries, housing sectors as well as in agriculture and manufacturing industries.

On the general economic front, 2007 has been an exceptionally good year for the Gambian economy. We have registered a GDP growth rate of about 7 percent, built around strong and well-managed public finances, and a sound monetary policy that has resulted in low inflation, and enhanced the international reserve situation of the country.

An important economic development is the recent approval granted to The Gambia after having reached HIPC Completion Point that simply means that the country will now start to benefit from both HIPC and G8 Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) debt relief. The resources that will be released from this commendable achievement will now be invested in the social sectors and other priority areas of the economy in 2008 and beyond.

This will include plans that are well advanced to address the sustainable development and retention of capacity in public administration through reforms in pay policy, pensions, human resource development, and related capacity retention programs.

While these would be addressed from the perspective of long-term planning and civil service reform, my government will be coming up with interim measures that are expected to contribute to the effective functioning of the civil service and the efficient dispensation of public administration. One of these measures include a 20 percent increase in all salaries across the board, with effect from 1st January, 2008.

Future salary increase from 2009 will be worked out on the basis of the Comprehensive Civil Service Reform Program Study that is expected to be completed soon.

For 2008, government will continue to build on the macro economic gains achieved in 2007. Public financial management and fiscal discipline will continue to be strengthened, and monetary policy will be further tightened to contain inflation and create employment. Considerable budgetary resources have already been earmarked for development of the social sectors to reduce poverty, and attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as well as the goals of Vision 2020.

Government has also taken the exceptional decision to commence financing huge investments in government assets. The building of new government offices, government residences in the Greater Banjul Area and in the Regions, the building of the Science and Mathematics Academy, and major refurbishment and renovations of existing government assets will all commence in 2008 and continue into 2009.

In the social sectors, notably education, health and agriculture, year 2008 would be one of consolidating the gains registered in each of these sectors. In 2008, the Basic and Secondary Education sector will continue to pursue policy objectives aimed at improving the quality of education and expanding opportunities for educational access for Gambian children.

More specialized academic institutions would be built to cater for our development requirements in human resources and capabilities. The year 2008 therefore calls for collective involvement to make our education system the most robust, and most responsive in the whole of the African continent and even beyond.

While my government would continue to demonstrate commitment to the education sector in a variety of ways, there are worrying signs emerging that these commitments are not being duly reciprocated by the willingness of parents to ensure that they complement our efforts at giving children the best home training required to inculcate in them good behavioural attitudes in readiness for their future leadership roles in this country.

It is becoming an unacceptable norm for some young school leavers to choose to do nothing rather than integrate themselves meaningfully into society, and contribute their quota to economic development. The new year should not be a year of idling and complacency.

It should be a year of hardwork, patriotism and meaningful positive contribution to national development. I, therefore, take this opportunity to call on all parents, community leaders, religious leaders and the society at large to work together, in inculcating the values of honesty, hard work, enterprise and the dignity of self-reliance especially in our youths as we march towards a Gambia that we will all be proud of; a model not only in Africa but indeed for the whole world.

May I take this opportunity to commend the security services for their laudable efforts in the maintenance of peace and security within our borders as well as in the peace keeping missions abroad. One cannot over-emphasize the importance of peace and stability as a prerequisite for any meaningful development.

For without security, peace and stability, businesses cannot be conducted, workers cannot create wealth, liberty cannot flourish and even life itself can become precarious. The security forces need the support of all honest, patriotic and law abiding citizens and residents in The Gambia and beyond.

In these times of great and positive change, we must also reinforce our vigilance against the evils of narrow-minded nationalism, ethnicity, factionalism, corruption and self-aggrandizement. We have worked hard to maintain a reputable, secure, peaceful and stable country that is fundamentally opposed to such malpractices.

We should therefore work harder to build upon, maintain as well as to sustain this gain. We must never let our guard down as we all know that there are a very few tiny devils in human form who do not wish this country well and are bent on trying to sabotage our every effort at nation building. They will always fail, Allah willing, as my government will never spare any effort at neutralizing them at all times. Allah is always on the side of Good. We shall continue to prevail over evil forces of Luciferians and of Bani IBLIS.

My government will continue to nurture a peaceful, enabling environment, one that respects the rule of law, gives hope and power to the poor, the vulnerable and the marginalized; one that also provides for a stable, secure and legal environment that caters for a confident and thriving private sector. This would in turn translate into a powerful ‘cordon sanitare’ against political instability and social malaise - weaknesses which can easily be exploited by trouble-shotters both at home and abroad.

It is my fervent hope that as we commence a new year fraught with challenges and exciting opportunities, you and I will be able to stand firm and remain committed to the vibrant hope and vision which were conceived over thirteen (13) years ago. We must also pray for Allah’s blessing and guidance; and pray for those in distress, the weak, the sick and the disabled. May Allah give us all strength, health, long life and happiness and prosperity. I need not remind you that ‘Operation No Compromise’ is here to stay as long as we yearn for a better society and country.

I now wish to take this opportunity to wish everyone of you a happy and prosperous 2008.

I also wish to thank you all for the overwhelming support and goodwill shown at the birth of Baby Muhamed.

May God bless The Gambia

Author: DO

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UNHCR,Red Cross observe refugee cultural day

PRESIDENT’S NEW YEAR MESSAGE 20% salary rise for Civil Servants